Entries in deferred prosecution agreements
(18)

Leniency programs (a.k.a. amnesty programs and deferred prosecution agreements) have so far proven the most successful and effective enforcement strategy tool, leading to its widespread adoption worldwide.

Singapore is the latest country to introduce legislation creating a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) framework for scheduled crimes, potentially including corruption. The Singaporean parliament approved the new law in March as part of a wider package of reforms in the Criminal Justice Reform Act.

The Australian government has tabled a series of new laws covering foreign bribery and other economic offenses. If these are passed into law, as we expect, they will make it much easier to prosecute companies for bribery offenses committed either at home or abroad.

There have been only two foreign bribery prosecutions in Australia -- one involving banknote printing companies Securency and Note Printing Australia, and another involving the construction company Lifese.

A report released Wednesday by Transparency International Canada recommends the government consider adopting legislation to create a deferred prosecution agreement scheme as a way to increase transparency and promote compliance.

The French bill for Transparency and Modernization of Economic Life, which, among other things, aims at preventing foreign bribery and intensifying the fight against it, has been the subject of much speculation during the past few months.